Family of NJ firefighter loses son to cancer

WALLINGTON – The family of a New Jersey firefighter who was killed in March battling a restaurant blaze has suffered another enormous loss.

The son of Wallington Firefighter Gregory Barnas died on Saturday following a battle with Leukemia.

Wallington Fire Commissioner Mark Tomko tells The Record newspaper that John Barnas, who was in his early 20’s, was a volunteer firefighter like his father and brother. His father had been donating blood cells for his son’s treatment.

Tomko says his department was distraught over how much the Barnas family had suffered.

The elder Barnas, 57, died from injuries suffered when he fell from the roof battling the restaurant blaze. He was a 40-year volunteer with the Bergen County town’s fire department, and a 29-year veteran of the Jersey City Fire Department.